Mission boys, Lowell girls win San Francisco Section...

1of10Lowell Cardinals senior guard Lauren Chan (25) and her team celebrate following the CIF San Francisco Section Girls Championship against the Lincoln Mustangs at Kezar Pavilion on Friday, Feb. 22, 2019, in San Francisco, Calif. The Cardinals won 49-43.Photo: Santiago Mejia / The Chronicle

2of10Mission Bears Matt Cohn (20) blocks Lincoln Mustangs point guard Zev Curiel-Friedmanl in the CIF San Francisco Section Boys Championship basketball game at Kezar Pavilion on Friday, Feb. 22, 2019, in San Francisco, Calif. The Bears won 55-46 against the Mustangs.Photo: Santiago Mejia / The Chronicle

3of10The Lowell Cardinals celebrate following the CIF San Francisco Section Girls Championship at Kezar Pavilion on Friday, Feb. 22, 2019, in San Francisco, Calif. The Cardinals won 49-43.Photo: Santiago Mejia / The Chronicle

5of10Mission Bears Andre Villarino leaps in celebration following the CIF San Francisco Section Boys Championship basketball game at Kezar Pavilion on Friday, Feb. 22, 2019, in San Francisco, Calif. The Bears won 55-46 against the Lincoln Mustangs.Photo: Santiago Mejia / The Chronicle

6of10Mission senior guard David Sonnier hoists the trophy and celebrates with his teammates after his Bears won their seventh title in eight years.Photo: Photos by Santiago Mejia / The Chronicle

8of10Mission Bears senior guard David Sonnier (11) drives to the hoop against the Lincoln Mustangs in the CIF San Francisco Section Boys Championship basketball game at Kezar Pavilion on Friday, Feb. 22, 2019, in San Francisco, Calif. The Bears won 55-46 against the Mustangs.Photo: Santiago Mejia / The Chronicle

9of10Lincoln Mustangs Jordan Aquino (11) makes the lay uo against the Mission Bears during the CIF San Francisco Section Boys Championship basketball game at Kezar Pavilion on Friday, Feb. 22, 2019, in San Francisco, Calif.Photo: Santiago Mejia / The Chronicle

They struggled with turnovers, never found the range from 3-point territory and gave their opponents plenty of opportunities from the foul line. But the Mission Bears — as they have so often in the past decade — found a way to win Friday night at Kezar Pavilion.

For the fifth straight year, the Bears captured the San Francisco Section championship, this time defeating Lincoln 55-46. It was never easy, as the Bears had to withstand a late Mustangs rally before securing their seventh title in eight years and eighth in 10 seasons.

“All these championships are great, but this one felt special, because I feel like a lot of people were licking their chops trying to get a piece of us,” Mission coach Arnold Zelaya said.

Sophomore Matt Cohn scored 13 points to lead four Mission players in double digits. Senior Ben Knight — the lone holdover from the Bears’ 36-1, state-title winning team in 2017 — struggled for much of the game but came alive in the fourth quarter to score six of his 10 points.

In the absence of Knight’s normal offense — he had been averaging 20 points per contest — the Bears used a balanced offense to withstand the Mustangs, as Mission got solid games from Jaraughn Torno (10 points), David Sonnier (11 points) and Andre Villarino (five points, seven rebounds, six assists.)

Cohn scored nine of his game-high point total in the second half.

“I knew these guys were down a little bit, so I had to pick them up,” Cohn said. “They’re my family.”

Mission took control in a frantic second quarter, using their defense to harass the Mustangs into turnovers that led to easy transition buckets. The Bears closed the half on a 12-4 run, capped by a steal and a buzzer-beating floater by freshman guard Maurice Oliver that put them up 28-20.

Leading 40-30 heading into the fourth quarter, the Bears appeared to be in control, but Lincoln chipped away at the lead, doing most of its damage from the foul line. The Mustangs closed to 42-40 on two free throws from Shakur Blaylock (12 points), but Knight responded with back-to-back driving finishes to put the Bears up 46-40. The Mustangs would get no closer than four the rest of the way.

Both teams will advance to next week’s Northern California playoffs.

Girls

Lowell 49, Lincoln 43: Senior guard KD Lee scored nine of her game-high 24 points in the fourth quarter, helping the Cardinals (17-8) capture their first San Francisco Section title since 2015 with a win at Kezar.

Neither team established control in a tight, back-and-forth affair, in which the largest lead of the game was seven points. Despite facing a significant size disadvantage, Lowell was able to pull away in the fourth, helped in large part by Lee, who knocked down three foul shots in the final minute.

“We’re undersized, but we pride ourselves on our defensive pressure,” Lowell coach Matt Magsanay said. “We get in people’s faces, and I think that paid off for us in the fourth quarter. And KD was absolutely clutch.”